Electronic Monitor For Banding Nozzles

Electronic Monitor for banding nozzles SPRAYING Accessories 17-2-23 "I've field-tested it for two years with excellent results. Lets you detect partially plugged nozzles before they stop working," says Russell Jensen, St. Ansgar, Iowa, about the electronic monitor he put together to monitor banding nozzles behind his planter. When he started banding chemicals on crops during planting, he went looking for a reliable monitor that would tell him if one of the out-of-sight spray nozzles stopped working. "There was nothing on the market that I felt would do the job so I decided to build my own," he says. "My prototype has a row of 6 warning lights that I mount on top of my Dickey-john planter monitor so I can check the planter and row units with a single glance. This monitor is so sensitive it'll tell you if spray pressure slows up as little as 10 to 15 percent so you can clean out a nozzle before it stops working altogether." Key to success of Jensen's system is a manifold fitted with a sensor that uses magnetic field to check flow of fluid to each nozzle. The manifold can be mounted anywhere on the planter. Individual hoses run from the manifold to each banding nozzle. "Other sprayer monitors use pressure sensors or electric eyes which can easily malfunction and aren't nearly as sensitive as this system," says Jensen, noting that his monitor has a built-in check feature since all lights come on at the end of the field when the sprayer is shut off. Jensen plans to start marketing an 8-row unit this spring designed for 4 to 8-row planters (you just block off the sensors you don't need). For a12 or 16-row planter, you use two 8-row units. Price fora basic unit is $375. Jensen notes that the monitor will work on any type of sprayer. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jensen Brothers, Rt. 2, Box 132, St. Ansgar, Iowa 50472.

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